


The Mandalorian and the Rebel Spy

by I_O_U_a_picture



Series: The Mandalorian and the Rebel Spy [1]
Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cassian was a foundling, Siblings, they deserve a family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:46:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29471172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_O_U_a_picture/pseuds/I_O_U_a_picture
Summary: Cassian, aged 17, is on one of this first missions for the Rebel Alliance since joining a year ago, has a problem. He's successfully gotten the intel but is being followed by stormtroopers. Luckily, he sees a familiar figure ahead of him in the crowd. He just has to hope it is who he thinks it is, otherwise he could be in worse trouble.An alternate universe where, instead of staying on Fest, Cassian is rescued by a Mandalorian and raised alongside Din, who acts as an older sibling.
Series: The Mandalorian and the Rebel Spy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2191029
Kudos: 16





	The Mandalorian and the Rebel Spy

**Author's Note:**

> Set in 9 BBY. 
> 
> Cassian, true to canon was born in 26 BBY, so is 17. 
> 
> Din, canon age not given, was born in 33 BBY so is 24.

Cassian could have almost cried in relief when he saw a familiar-looking armour-clad figure ahead of him in the cramped, crowded streets of Jedha. His mission, while technically successful as he was in procession of the intelligence he had been sent to retrieve, was on the verge of failing as he was being tailed by two Imperial bucketheads - and they had been tailing him from a steady distance for a few minutes. If he couldn’t shake them, he was fucked.

Quickly as he could, he worked his way through the crowd of people who were visiting the temple. His target was dead ahead of him and the spy could tell that he knew he was being followed. How could he not? Cassian was following him, catching up to him with every step he took, and Cassian was being followed by stormtroopers who couldn’t have blended into the crowds even if they hadn’t been wearing their uniforms.

Just when Cassian was almost within reach of his acquired target - and hopefully it was who he thought it was otherwise this was going to get real awkward, real fast - the figure ducked into an alley. The rebel spy knew it was a bad idea - he’d trained with this guy and his kind after all. While this would be a basic evasion manoeuvre to anyone else (rebel training included), for this guy, it was setting a trap, and if Cassian was wrong, he wouldn’t have to worry about the stormtroopers arresting him. He’d most likely be dead.

Knowing he was damned if he did and certainly damned if he didn’t, Cassian turned into the alleyway and his instincts were on high alert. Where was he? How the kriffing hell could a Mandalorian hide himself?

That feeling didn’t last for long as a blaster was suddenly in his side. Instinctively, he grabbed it and twisted away from it, and attempted to grapple his would-be attacker to the ground. That didn’t work as his assailant got out of the hold, kicking him in the side in the process. Cassian ended up on his back, the air knocked out of his lungs, a boot on his chest and a blaster pointing at his head.

“Wait, wait - _burc’ya vaal burk’yc, burc’ya veman_ ,” he hurriedly rattled off in Mando’a, pulling his scarf down, which he had wrapped loosely around his head, and away from the lower half of his face.

The Mandalorian above him tilted his head. “Cassian?” The man in question nodded his head.

“I don’t have time to explain but I’ve got two stormtroopers following me. Help me get rid of them and I’ll explain after.”

The Mandalorian was still for a second, before reaching his free hand out for Cassian to grasp, lifting him up off the ground as if he weighed next to nothing. Quickly, Cassian went to grab his own blaster, but the move was blocked by a hand curling around his wrist. “Get out of here - I’ll deal with them. My ship is docked in hanger B-12 to the south of the city - the codes are still the same.” The Festian knew an order when he heard one and quickly set off to find a way to where the Razor Crest was docked.

Even a few streets over, he knew when the ‘troopers were killed. Other ‘troopers stopped what they were doing and rerooted in the direction from where Cassian had just come from. Sticking to the shadows, he slipped by patrols and, after half an hour, managed to find the right spaceport. The manager of the spaceport looked suspicious of him - but quickly lost interest when he managed to enter the Razor Crest without issue, or reverting to breaking in. He wasn’t surprised - after all, who better to enforce the security of a ship than a Mandalorian.

Cassian settled himself on a piece of cargo strapped to the hull’s floor and got comfortable. He could be here a while - anything from ten minutes to twelve hours. He checked his chrono - he had plenty of time before his handlers would notice him missing - after the completion of his mission, he was supposed to find his own way back to base, just like he had found his own way to Jedha. It could be days before they noticed he wasn’t back on base.

Absently, he looked around him. It looked the same as it did in his memories. The weapons locker, the carbon-freezer - even the line of carbonite bounties hanging up - and not one thing out of place. Some things never changed.

* * *

Cassian was sure his ass had fallen asleep by the time the Mandalorian returned. He sat up straighter when he saw the loading ramp start to descend. The Mandalorian calmly walked up the ramp before setting it to close again, then carefully stowed his weapons away. Not once did he look at Cassian.

That was probably a bad sign.

Without even turning his head, still facing away from the Rebel, he said, “you’re a _di’kut_ , coming here alone.”

“I’m not an idiot - this is for the cause-”

“A cause that will get you killed,” that seemed to do it. The Mandalorian sharply turned around to face Cassian. “The covert raised you, taught you our language and culture, taught you how to fight and handle yourself, looked after you when you were hurt or sick. Our _buir_ did everything he could for the covert and the foundlings - he found the both of us for kriffs-sake. He gave us the love we wouldn’t have gotten as orphans in wars that anyone cared about enough to even lift a finger to stop. Have you told your rebellion friends about Fest and what happened that day?” The modulator in the helmet did nothing to mask just how angry the Mandalorian was. If anything, Cassian felt like he had been transported through time, back to a time when their _buir_ was giving them a stern talking to.

Din’s emotions had always run a little hotter - he was just good at keeping them in check… most of the time.

“And now you have the audacity to tell me that risking your life for the Rebellions cause is worth your death? It really isn’t Cassian. No-one’s life is worth that. If you wanted a cause less likely to get you killed, you should have stayed at the covert - taken the Resol’nare. You were good Cassian - could have been _beroya_.”

“Like that would have happened. _Buir_ would…” then it hit him. If only one person was allowed out of the covert, how was Din here, in the Razor Crest? “How long?”

A deep sigh could be heard clearly through the helmets modulator, and Din seemed to deflate. “Six months… If I had known where to find you, I would have told you, _vod’ika_.”

“I know you would have, _ori’vod_.” Cassian whispered. He cleared his throat. “So, you’re the new _beroya_. Must have ruffled some porg feathers - plenty of others in the covert who might have been a better choice, if you’re purely going by age.”

Din chuckled, leaning back against the hull. He seemed to hesitate slightly before removing his helmet and placing it carefully beside him. Cassian noted the frown lines which were starting to mar his brothers’ tanned skin. He looked older - but not his twenty-four years, he still looked younger than that.

“Almost got my head ripped off by Paz - the only thing that stopped him was the _alor_ reminding him that part of being a bounty hunter requires a certain ability to not stand out more than we already do. Some of the elders were not best amused either but accepted that I had the most knowledge and _buir_ would have made sure I was ready.”

Cassian snorted and shook his head. “He was saying you were ready from age twenty. He let you do your first lone capture at seventeen. You were more than ready.”

“As were you.” Cassian tilted his head, confused. “You really think that we would have allowed you to leave after not taking the creed if we didn’t think you would be okay? We hated it - _buir_ became very difficult to deal with for a few months, especially if someone at the covert dared to badmouth you, but he knew you would be fine.” Din turned his full gaze on him. “Although, he may have dragged your ass back kicking and screaming if he had been the one you’d ran into today.”

The young rebel spy knew he wouldn’t have stood a chance against their _buir._ He never understood how a man with such a lithe figure could take down bounties double his weight. Cassian was well aware of his slight, less muscular figure - no way would he have gotten the upper hand in any physical altercation with their _buir_. The man was like beskar.

‘Had been like beskar,’ Cassian thought to himself.

Din sighed and moved over to sit beside Cassian, loping an arm over his shoulders and drawing him into his beskar covered side. Cassian accepted the comfort he was being offered - he hadn’t had much of it since leaving the covert just over a year ago. It was one of the few things he missed about his life with the Mandalorians. Their openness to love and being willing to give it without expecting anything in return. If you were apart of a clan - an _aliit_ \- you knew you were loved and that the other members would be loyal to you, stand up for you. The young Festian missed that feeling of safety - mainly the feeling that had emanated from his _buir_ and his older brother.

It felt like home.

Din, meanwhile, was categorising the changes in his little brother. He’d lost some of his baby fat to growing taller - he was almost at height with Din - and probably had a little more growing to go. He had a lithe figure - much like himself. Their _buir_ had always commented on how he’d managed to find two ade’s, on planets which were very different (Aq Vetina having a warmer climate in winter than Fest could ever hope to have in the peak of summer), that were so alike in looks and build. Personality-wise, they were children of the planets they had come from. Din’s temper was fierier while Cassian was quiet and thoughtful in comparison, but no less aggressive when push came to shove.

Over the years, they learned from each other how to control their tempers. Din more so than Cassian. Letting anyone get to you in a fight was dangerous. Letting anger fuel that fight was more so - as a few scraps with Paz when they were younger had proven. Paz, always destined to be larger than everyone else, had used taunts and insults which caused Din, the better of the two teenagers, to lose this judgement more than once. Din still had a scar on his forearm to prove it.

Letting a deep breath out of his nose, which slightly rustled Cassian's dark mop of hair, Din prepared himself for letting his little brother go again. He knew he had to. Cassian was stubborn to a fault. Finding out about their _buir_ would not change that. Seeing Din again wouldn’t either. Being surrounded by memories shared on the Razor Crest certainly wouldn’t. Cassian had made up his mind and found where he felt he was needed.

If only Din could say the same thing. But he had a task - a job - he had agreed to do for the best of the tribe, and he would without fail.

“Do you have an extraction point or somewhere I can drop you off at?”

Cassian shook his head slightly. “Part of the mission was getting to and from here as a normal person would - less scrutiny. A lift to another planet would be appreciated - so long as you’re not making a detour to do so.”

“What’s a detour when family is involved,” Din smiled, ruffling Cassian’s hair as he stood up, ignoring the teenager's indigent squawk.

* * *

  
Din watched silently as Cassian descended the ramp and almost instantly blended into the crowd at the spaceport they had settled on. The younger man was going to make his own way back to wherever the Rebel base was stationed and this included hitching a ride to another planet before finding another Rebel on transport duties.

As much as it pained him to see his little brother go, at least this time Din knew that Cassian would try and comm him every once in a while - even if the message was simply to state that he wasn’t dead. That was all he could ask of him and the Mandalorian would just have to accept it.

Once he could no longer see his brother in the crowd, he raised the ramp, returned to the cockpit and started preparing for takeoff. He had a job to do, after all. Sitting around on his ass thinking about ‘ _what ifs_ ’ wasn’t going to get them done.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I wanted a bit of a dynamic to happen between Din and Cassian. (Growing up an only child with lots of older cousins - the only girl no less - I hope I got that brotherly relationship right). Let’s be honest --both of them need some family in their life. I tried to balance Din’s happiness/relief of seeing his little bro after a few years with the ‘wtf are you doing’ kind of concern with the Rebellion thing. Hopefully, I managed that. 
> 
> I also, as stated in the beginning notes, have possibly de-aged Din slightly. Although Wookiepedia just says born sometime before 19 BBY. So, if we were to say he was born the same year as Cassian (26BBY) and was therefore 7 when he was rescued by the Mandos, he would be 35 canonically but I feel like he’s a little bit too well established for that as a bounty hunter in the series so closer to 40 seemed better I guess. 
> 
> Anyway, I might do some more one-shots and turn this into a series. I think it would be funny to do one with Kay meeting Din and basically only surviving because Cassian swears hands down that the droid can be trusted and Din basically grumbling under his breath the entire time about it. Also, like the idea of Cassian/Kes friendship and maybe doing a slight canon divergence experiment as well. 
> 
> I’m also currently on furlough, in lockdown so there's that too.
> 
> Translations - at least according to mandoa.org  
> burc’ya vaal burk’yc, burc’ya veman - a friend during danger is a true friend  
> Ori’vod - big brother, older brother, special friend  
> Vod’ika - little brother  
> Buir - parent, guardian, can mean mother or father  
> Ade - child  
> Di’kut - idiot  
> Aliit - family, clan name, identity  
> Alor - leader, chief


End file.
